1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to precision casting processes and, more particularly, relates to a process of casting a semi-solid thixotropic metal alloy material between dies at a temperature above the melting point of the material of an insert in at least one of the dies and of subsequently melting the insert from the casting.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
The typical cast metal part is formed in coreless dies or in dies with cores that must be mechanically removed from the part after casting. The part is also mechanically separable from the dies. Of course, the mechanical removal requirement severely limits the range of core uses. The core cannot be formed with protrusions or other complex shapes that would form undercuts, threads, bores, etc. in the casting because the protrusions on the core would prohibit its subsequent mechanical withdrawal from the casting. As a result, threads, bores, undercuts, etc. must be machined into the cast part after casting and core removal at considerable expense to the manufacturer. In fact, post-casting machining costs often represents 50% to 75% of the cost of a finished precision-cast part having complex internal shapes. Some of these problems could be alleviated if a suitable dissolvable die or core were to be used in a casting process. Currently, the investment casting process, also known as the xe2x80x9clost waxxe2x80x9d process, comes close to meeting this goal. However, parts formed by this process can have complex external shapes, but not complex internal shapes. They also usually require grinding, polishing, or other secondary machining operations for fine features such as threads, bores, and seal grooves. Other processes, which cast a metal shot about a sand or salt core and subsequently remove the core by flushing it from the resultant casting, also come close to meeting this goal, but also require secondary finishing operations to meet tolerances for their finer features. Parts formed from these other processes also tend to have high internal porosity. This porosity is a problem in applications such as brake calipers in which the part needs to be precise and also hold a hydraulic pressure. It also prevents heat treatment because the trapped gases in the pores blister the casting during heat treatment. It is also quite expensive.
Melt-away core casting processes have been proposed in which a metal part is cast about a core formed from a metal having a lower melting point than the melting point of the metal casting and in which the core is subsequently melted away. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 1,544,930 to Pack; U.S. Pat. No. 3,258,816 to Rearwin; U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,531 to Drury et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,933 to Voss. In each of those processes, a fully-molten aluminum-alloy metal is cast about a zinc-alloy core, and the zinc-alloy core is removed from the part, e.g., by subsequent heat treatment of the aluminum-alloy part. Drury et al. and Voss additionally disclose that their processes are applicable to complex cores so as to produce parts having complex internal shapes. However, all of these processes exhibit disadvantages severely limiting their range of practical applications.
Most notably, in all of the melt-away core casting processes described above, great care must be taken to avoid melting the core during the casting process. This is understandable because a great deal of heat is available for transfer to the core from the molten metal of the shot, and extreme measures must be taken to insulate the core from this heat or to prevent this heat transfer from melting the core. For instance, Pack""s process appears to be limited to castings having simple undercuts and hence not requiring complex cores. Rearwin and Voss require the application of a layer of insulating material such as Vermiculite to at least those parts of the core that are relatively thin when compared to the cast metal part in order to prevent the core from melting during the casting process. Drury et al. discloses chilling its core to approximately xe2x88x92300xc2x0 F. prior to casting in order to prevent over-heating of the core during casting. Moreover, it is believed that all of these melt-away core casting processes are limited to applications in which 1) the core is relatively massive when compared to the casting, and 2) liquid metal injection takes place at relatively low pressures and at relatively low shot flow velocities.
The need therefore remains for a versatile melt-away die insert or core casting process that can form precision castings economically and with high repeatability.
It is therefore a principal object of the invention to provide a process for producing precision castings that have complex internal and/or external geometries and that require little or no machining of their interior surfaces after core removal.
A second object of the invention is to provide a process that meets the first principal object and that is highly repeatable.
A third object of the invention is to provide a process that meets the first principal object and that does not place unnecessary restraints on production.
A fourth object of the invention is to provide a process that meets the first principal object and that can be practiced economically.
A fifth object of the invention is to provide a process that meets the first principal object and that can be used to produce parts with highly complex surface geometries.
In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, these objects are achieved by providing a method of obtaining precision castings by casting a shot of a semi-solid thixotropic alloy, such as a thixotropic aluminum alloy, about a die insert formed from a metal having a melting point lower than the solid-to-semi-solid transition temperature of the thixotropic alloy. The thixotropic alloy, having relatively little thermal energy, solidifies rapidly, attaining a precision shape. After the thixotropic material solidifies, the die insert is melted out in a subsequent heating process, leaving a precision-formed part requiring no machining. The process is applicable to a wide variety of casting processes, particularly processes producing precise parts that must contain hydraulic fluid under pressure, as is found in hydraulic brake calipers and the like. The process is also well-suited for producing cast parts of high tolerance that are essentially non-porous.
A second principal object of the invention is to provide a heat treatable cast metal part produced by a method performed in accordance with the first principal object and therefore exhibiting excellent tolerance and porosity characteristics without having to be machined. In fact, the casting is suitable for use as a brake caliper after it has been cooled and heat treated.
A third principal object is to provide a method of melting a metal die insert from a cast metal part.
In accordance with this object, a combination of a cast metal part and a metal die insert are heated together to a core melting temperature that is above the melting point of the die insert material but beneath the solid-to-semi-solid transition temperature of the thixotropic alloy of the casting. Preferably, heating occurs in a liquid bath designed to achieve only slight positive or negative buoyancy of the liquid metal from the core relative to the liquid of the bath. This slight buoyancy maximizes the potential for surface tension in the liquid core material to pull all of the liquid core material away from the casting.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the present invention, are given by way of illustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the present invention without departing from the spirit thereof, and the invention includes all such modifications.